LAURA COLE - Coalescing & Metamorphosis

After listening to the striking and often startling new album from Metamorphic led by by pianist/composer/arranger Laura Cole, I was intrigued to find out more about the band and also talk to Laura about her music. Drawing on her influences from many genres of music, Cole is not afraid to utilise these disparate musical styles either individually, or at times collectively, and in the process creates music that knows boundaries in a joyous and raucous manner that reminds me of the iconic Brirish big band Loose Tubes.When discussing her music and the musicians she plays with, Laura is just as expansive and enthusiatic. The sheer joy she obviously gets from writing and performing is readily conveyed in the her answers to questions that she must, by now, be used to being asked.

We begin by talking about the concept of the new album, and the Laura's compositions for it. "The concept of the album lies behind the title really- a sense of different elements being brought together, coalescing and hopefully making a whole, in the form of the album itself" she explains. "These different elements are geographical, in that musicians from the North and South of England have been brought together to play on this album; they are also historical, as I have dedicated the album to two of my great grandfathers, both of whom were involved in the same orchestra and appear on the same photograph on the insert of the album, but who never actually directly met. They are also emotional, in that I feel this album represents consolidation for me, and moving on from the first Metamorphic album The Rock Between, which was very much about exploring my previous problems with RSI and depression and the effect these experiences had on my creativity. Coalescencerepresents an attempt to gather all these experiences together and move forward with them, towards somewhere new. Compositionally I wanted to continue to develop some of the ideas I explored in The Rock Between, in terms of setting the vocals as aninstrumental part of the group; juxtaposing different sections of different tunes together with compositional ideas of my own, like in the track 'Little Woman, Lonely Wing'; developing our sound as improvisers together and allowing for a bit more space for this, such as in the first track, Puma; the sense of telling a story within a composition, through text and compositional shape, as in 'Puma' and 'Flotsam and Jetsam'; the challenge of arranging well known pieces and trying to give them our own sound, such as Radiohead’s 'Reckoner' and Kenny Wheeler’s 'Gentle Piece' (an arrangement of Bjork’s Hyperballad' appears on The Rock Between); continuing to develop the idea of setting poems I write to the music I write and how these intermesh- Kerry never ceases to amaze me with how adept she is at fulfilling this; and finally really getting inside playing grooves together as a band."

So where do you draw your inspiration from, and who are your influences as a composer/arranger? "Firstly, from the fantastic musicians whom I have the pleasure of playing with in Metamorphic" enthuses Cole, "as well as the musicians I work with in other projects, such as the big band I co-lead with bassist Seth Bennett, The Bennett Cole Orchestra, as well as Martin Archer’s group Engine Room Favourites, which involves incredible musicians such as Corey Mwamba, Mick Beck, Graham Clark and Pete Fairclough. I find it really inspiring that despite the very difficult environment in the arts in the UK at the moment, there are so many musicians all over the country who are continuing to create so much interesting music. My six year old daughter Martha is also a big inspiration to me, continues Laura. "Seeing and experiencing the world with Martha alongside me is really enriching. She’s brilliant, and being six, is always completely honest about what she thinks of my music! It’s sometimes challenging and frustrating, of course, but having Martha made me really think about what I wanted from music, and what it meant to me. My interest in photography is also an inspiration to me; in fact taking photos is what sparked my creativity back into life after having to take years off music due to RSI. So the visual world has had a big impact on my creativity; textures and symmetry in nature, juxtapositions of colours and light, fleeting feelings caught in a moment, and architecture. In terms of music, I grew up with lots of music around me. Also, although my parents aren’t musicians, they have always listened to a lot of music, especially my dad, who is a huge jazz fan, and who has the most amazing rare vinyl collection from the 60s and 70s. When I was little there were certain records that I wouldn’t let my parents play as they would make me cry; I guess music for me has always been about emotional connection. Some of my influences as a composer/arranger are: Trevor Watts Moiré Music Ensemble, Charlie Haden and the Liberation Music Orchestra, DJ Shadow, Steve Coleman, Nikki Iles, Alex Wilson' and Moondog."

With a wide ranging taste in music, and the conflicting demands of performing and writing, I ask Laura how she differentiates between being between being a musician and playing piano and composing; and does she prefer one over the other? "I guess I don’t differentiate or prefer one over the other really! Composing gives me great joy because it is how I finally got back into doing music again after RSI, so it represents me being well again; and any note I play on the piano now I am grateful for as for a while I didn’t think I’d ever be able to play again. So no I don’t prefer one over the other I don’t think, it just feels like they occupy slightly different headspaces."

With a couple of albums and an EP under their belt, Metamorphic have been together for nearly five years. So I ask, how did she select the musicians for the band, and how does she feel the music has developed in the time you’ve been together performing live and recording? "The musicians on the album, with the exception of vocalist Kerry Andrew, all met while studying on the Jazz course at Middlesex many years ago", expalins Laura. "The original lineup idea for Metamorphic was actually for an all-female band, but this didn’t work out for various reasons, so I decided that I would ask people who I felt a good vibe with playing-wise and on a personal level regardless of whether they were male or female. I had played with Paul Sandy, John Martin, Chris Williams and Tom Greenhalgh throughout Middlesex at different stages, and their playing and energy had always struck me. Originally Pete Grogan, the other horn in Led Bib, was to be the alto player for Metamorphic, but due to work commitments he suggested Chris instead. I can’t imagine Metamorphic without Chris now (although I am sure Pete would have done a great job!)." Warming to her theme Laura says "I think the course at Middlesex really encouraged people to find their own sound, their own path, even if it meant creating music that wasn’t always the most overtly accessible; maybe this is also what connects us. I asked Kerry if she would join the band after seeing her vocal trio Juice, who I was blown away by. I thought the timbre of her voice and overall approach would work really well in the band, and again, I think her involvement really contributes to the overall sound of the group. I feel we all know each really well now, and I strongly believe that it is so important to have the right chemistry in a band. I really like the chemistry in Metamorphic, and love playing with these lovely people and superb musicians. I think musically we’ve developed in that we trust each other more and more and can get inside each other’s sound. Also I think the blending in the frontline has become really special the more we’ve played together."

The album has a cohesiveness that would suggest that the music had been performed live, and was 'played in' by the band. "Very much so, with the exception of 'Reckoner' we had gigged all the pieces on the album prior to recording, including the big band piece 'Light Up Yourself'. We had also played this piece many times just as Metamorphic." And talking of 'Reckoner' the use of the string quartet works superbly, and is one of the highlights of the album. Was this just a one off using the strings, or is it something that you plan to develop further? "Thanks! I was really pleased with how this piece came out. I think the string players did a great job, it was a absolute pleasure to play with them all and record this piece, and I think Philip Bagenal and George Murray at Eastcote Studios (who recorded the whole album with the exception of the big band piece) did a fantastic job of capturing the full and sort of woody sound of their instruments. Writing for strings is something I’d definitely like to develop further. I really love the richness and lyricism of strings playing together. It’s great to have a string section in the big band I co-lead."

Co-led with with double bass player, Seth Bennett, The Bennett-Cole Orchestra is is an improvising big band that can be heard on Laura's composition ‘Light Up Yourself’, and is another highpoint of the Coalescenceset, and suggests that writing for a larger ensemble could be a lucrative step for Cole to take and develop her skills further. "The Orchestra is made up of lots of great musicians based in Leeds, Bradford and Sheffield, enthuses Laura. "We play compositions written by Seth and I, with a lot of improvising in between. I really like the fact that the band is almost 50/50 male/female too. It’s a real buzz writing for this many people and creating such a big sound, I love it! The last gig we did, we invited vibes player Corey Mwamba to come and guest with us which was really exciting. We would love to record and maybe tour but we’d need funding for this as there are quite a lot of us! I am wondering about seeing if I can get a commission for us to create some music for a silent film: my great grandfather was a silent film pianist and it would be great if I could connect with that in some way, and somehow carry it forward." So with plans a foot for yet another project, as well as her work with Metamorphic, Lauara Cole is certainly not willing to stand still and let opprotunities pass her by